December 13, 2000
Program simulates uphill battle of poverty
Participants discover the difficulties facing impoverished families everyday
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
Walking a month in the shoes of the poorest of poor, area human service workers and community volunteers found out what it is like to have hungry children, choose between paying a utility bill or rent, dodge neighborhood crime and spend endless, frustrating hours in lines or completing paperwork.
At a Community Poverty Simulation held Friday at the Grand Traverse County Civic Center, 60 participants discovered firsthand the choices, frustrations and uphill battle facing impoverished families. They drew roles and spent four 15-minute weeks playing their parts, bouncing around from school to employment office to grocery store and food pantry, with trips to the Family Independence Agency or pawnshop thrown in. Issued limited funds and facing numerous bills, even finding money to pay for public transportation was difficult.
"I found I didn't have time for my kids, I was just trying to survive," said Cheryl Beery, owner of Creative Childcare, who played a single mother during the simulation. "I tried to get welfare but I just gave up so I was going to just buy staples like beans and rice, but I didn't have time to shop."
After the simulation, participants agreed that whether you are a single mother struggling to feed and house your family or an elderly person in poor health, living on or below the edge means you make tough choices every day.
"I drew being a single mom, and I had to choose between trying to find a way to pay rent on a sub-standard apartment and paying the utility bill that was greater than my monthly income; plus I had a sick kid," said Nona Zenner, a secretary at Early On. "Then I ended up wasting three weeks at social services to find out there was no help for me at all."
The simulation was co-sponsored by the Michigan State University Extension, Grand Traverse County, and the Grand Traverse Human Services Coordinating Council. The organizations decided to bring this program to Traverse City to help raise awareness of issues facing families living in poverty. The simulation is a kit developed by Reform Organization of Welfare Education Association in St. Louis and is available to extension offices from Michigan State University.
"The first time I did this I was a participant, one of the family members," said Jennifer Berkey, a home economist with the Michigan State University Extension, Grand Traverse County. "It is just a real powerful experience. I feel very empathic and understanding about all different types of families. But after going through the training you really have a better understanding about what is going on in their lives. It makes you more willing to accept them as they are."
Twenty of the participants played the part of community workers, including teacher, caseworker, grocer, food pantry worker, a pawnbroker and bus driver. There was even a drug dealer to lure families and kids with the offer of easy, quick cash, though a police officer gave chase.
Following their assigned roles was just as much a challenge as for those playing family members.
"There were things that the children needed that I could not possibly do," said Audrey Linder, a retired teacher and community volunteer who attended the seminar. "But the most frustrating thing to me was that I did not have the time or energy to give the kids what they needed."
"I just wanted to cry, I didn't know there was so much need and I didn't know what to do."
For the professionals who deal with families facing tough choices every day, the simulation was an eye-opening experience.
"We think we're aware but we're really not until we walk in their shoes," said Mary Main, Maternal Support Services and Infant Support Services coordinator for the Grand Traverse County Health Department.
"For one or two hours we experienced real life in terms of poverty. The key is how does that change us in our attitudes and dealings with people in the future."